The Apple of My Eye
Chapter 08
It was dark, she had noticed. Dark, grimy, dirty, and cold. It was hard to tell where she was, huddled up in the corner of a pitch-black room. Not daring to move a single step, stayed shivering in her little corner. She had no idea where she was, what she was doing there, and most importantly, why she was even there. But… where was ‘there’? It was hard to discern, given her certain situation.
“I’m scared.” She heard herself say, but froze when it came out differently than her normal voice. “I want to go home.” There was a choked sob, and she felt herself bury her head in her arms, teardrops falling onto her bare legs.
Suddenly, in a far part of the room, a door began to open and light came flooding in. Strangely, panic began to seize her body and she shook hysterically as footsteps came closer and closer. Automatically, her body scooted back to press against the cold brick wall, and a whimper escaped her throat.
“Help me…” sobbed.
“…”
“Someone, please.”
“!”
“SAVE ME!”
“!”
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Gasping, ’s eyes shot open.
“… thank goodness.”
Blinking her eyes, Atobe Keigo, and Tezuka Kunimitsu came into focus, both of them leaning over her body with tense bodies. They relaxed when began to sit up, groaning as the sheet fell around her waist.
“Where…?” murmured, looking at all the tennis players surrounding her bed. “A-Atobe-senpai? Kuni-kun? What happened?” She groaned, pressing her temple to alleviate the pain. Her head hurt. Tezuka and Atobe sighed in relief, and the captain of Seigaku gently pushed her back down onto her futon. Her back hit the soft mattress, and she threw an arm over her eyes to block out the light from the lamps.
“You fainted in the hot springs, -chan.” Tezuka answered. “The wife of the owner found you and called for help.” ’s brows furrowed.
“The owner’s wife…? You mean the sweet old lady at the counter?” She asked. Tezuka nodded.
“Yes. She was very worried, as were the rest of us.” He answered. sighed; taking her arm off of her eyes and looked blearily up at all of them. There was silence for a few minutes, to let gain control of her brain and focus well. It was only then that she realized something.
“Wait, wait. She called for help?” asked, starting to sit up.
“Yes. She is merely an old woman, so she could never have picked you up herself.” Tezuka answered. began to blush immensely.
“So… so who did?” whispered meekly, her eyes darting at all of them, who suddenly started to blush as well. Atobe avoided her eyes, gritting his teeth. realized why he was so shifty and nervous. “A-Atobe-senpai?” She squeaked, turning a brighter shade of red.
“Ore-sama was the closest one.” He defended. “She was just shouting for help, so ore-sama came. Ore-sama was going to check up on you to tell you to go to sleep soon, because ore-sama noticed you seem more exhausted than usual. Ore-sama didn’t see anything, if that was what you were implying!” blushed, looking down to fiddle with her hands.
“A-arigatou, Atobe-senpai.” She muttered. He looked away, blushing more.
“B-betsuni.”
Just then, the door opened and a sweet old lady shuffled into the room.
“Oh my! You’re awake, little one.” She said, kneeling down at ’s bedside and feeling her forehead. “You don’t seem to have a cold, or a fever. Are you feeling alright?” nodded.
“Yes. Thank you for everything. I don’t mean to be a burden.” blushed, embarrassed. The old woman chuckled.
“No trouble at all, my dear.” She reassured, patting ’s arm. “But please do take care of yourself in the future. There may not be someone there to help you if you faint another time.” The old woman suddenly turned to the rest of the boys in the room and gestured to them with a shooing motion. “Now the little misses here needs her rest. It would be wise to leave her to sleep. And I would suggest you allow her to rest tomorrow as well.” protested quickly.
“What? No! I can attend the practice tomorrow Atobe-senpai, I just need a good night’s sleep, that’s all!” Atobe shook his head at her statement, pointing her to her bed.
“Ore-sama will not allow it. Ore-sama has noticed -chan has been very tired lately, so ore-sama orders -chan spend a day of bed rest tomorrow.” Tezuka followed through with Atobe’s statement before could get a chance to butt in.
“I agree. I’m sure the coaches wouldn’t mind giving a manager a day off, especially if she just fainted the night before. I’ll talk it through with the counsellors tomorrow.” Atobe, not one to be one-upped, also agreed.
“Ore-sama will as well.”
“See? Now get to bed, young lady. Staying up late will give you horrible acne.” The old woman said wisely, chuckling to herself as all the teenagers in the room paled. gulped, lying back down and clutching the covers to her.
“Hai.” She murmured softly, turning on her side to get more comfortable. She heard everyone’s footsteps fade away, and the lights flicker off. As soon as the door shut, she began to shake and whimper. Flashes of images came rushing back to her again, and she began to twist and turn, stifling her sobs.
A few minutes later, the door opened and closed, someone slipping inside. froze, breath shaking.
“Who… who’s there?” She asked. A small light flickered, and dimly Atobe Keigo’s face began to glow. “A-Atobe-senpai!” He seemed to blush under the dim light, but couldn’t tell for sure.
“Ore-sama noticed you get restless in the darkness.” He muttered. “So ore-sama brought a candle for you to sleep beside, so you won’t get scared.” Her eyes widened, and she was surprised at how closely he paid attention to the littlest details. Soon, her face softened into a smile, and she reached out to grasp his hand thankfully.
“Arigatou, Kei-chan.”
The light flickered, finally registering not only what she had said, but also the utter shock on Atobe’s face. She quickly sat up, bowing to apologize for her mistake.
“Ah! I-I didn’t mean to-, I’m sorry Atob-,”
A hand swiftly covered her mouth, and was offered the luxury of seeing the famous Atobe Keigo’s face up close and personal, covered in an expression of disbelief.
“Say it again.” He whispered breathlessly. blinked, feelings his hand slip away to give her a chance to speak.
“K-Kei-chan…?” She said quietly. A look of absolute happiness flittered over his face, and he chuckled, winding his arms around her yukata-clad form, breathing in the scent of her hair.
“Say it again, -chan, again!” He exclaimed softly into her ear. blushed, reaching out and embracing him awkwardly.
“Kei-chan?”
“Thank you Kami, thank you.” heard him say as he nestled further into her. “Thank you for bringing -chan back to me.” blinked, but smiled and hugged Keigo tightly. She didn’t know what was going on, but she felt very comfortable, and it felt very familiar hugging Keigo.
“Kei-chan, I love you.” She breathed.
The flame burning on the tip of the candle flickered.
“… What?”
’s eyes shot open, and she quickly backed away from Keigo, eyes wide and hand covering her mouth.
“A-ah, I didn’t mean-,” She blushed furiously, tears glittering at the corners of her eyes. That wasn’t supposed to happen! She was just supposed to accept his kindness, and then let him leave her with the candle so she could sleep. Unfortunately, every plan is bound to have something go wrong.
Fortunately, this particular mistake… well let’s just say it left one happy , and one very happy Atobe Keigo.
©Snowflake